A Resolution Revolution

With February already here, many of us will already be looking guiltily over our shoulders at resolutions we made back on New Year’s Day, some of which will already have fallen by the wayside – oops. Whether your heart was set on getting fitter, taking better care of your body or spending more time with friends, chances are that life’s practicalities may already gotten in the way of those best laid plans! But isn’t that the problem with the whole concept of annual resolutions? The Christmas break gives us the time and room to consider which areas of our lives might need a little improvement, but how often do we try to make resolutions during the year?

Our hopes, dreams and goals are often too big and too wide-ranging to fit into a set of annually-made promises, while the accompanying pressure only makes things harder to accomplish. If there’s one thing I’ve learned since opening Maple & Fitz, it’s that things won’t always work out the way you’d planned (believe me), which is why you should allow yourself to adapt and amend your goals as you go. That’s why I’ve started to scale down my resolutions, and make them on a weekly rather than yearly basis.

I always try to find a weekend window to enjoy a warming tea, green juice or a glass of wine and reflect on the previous week, turning over what happened for good or bad. I set up new goals for the following week and think about what activities I can take on to achieve them, whether it’s jogging in a new neighbourhood, meeting up with an old friend or going out for dinner with my husband. I’ll then schedule them in my calendar, and will check the week after to see how many I managed to accomplish. If I end up falling short, I don’t beat myself up – I simply try to assess why certain things didn’t work out, so I can plan the following week a little differently.

I’ve found that taking this approach goes a long way towards alleviating the stress of a super busy schedule, and stops me from worrying too much when life inevitably gets in the way! Time alone each weekend has taught me that while creating my own business is thrilling and rewarding, taking time for myself to continuously grow and develop is just as important. Give it a try and let me know how you get on next time you pop in for a visit!